Vaccinated NHS staff to be considered exempt from isolating

Those working for the NHS with both vaccines may be excluded from self-isolating even if traced as a Covid contact, according to a rule change Ministers are now considering.

Out of fear for staff shortages, the Government is now determining whether fully vaccinated health and social care workers should be exempt from self-isolating when coming into contact with a Covid patient.

The plan would be to replace the need to self-isolate with daily tests after July the 19th, as the final exit stage of lockdown occurs with everything reopening.

Daily Covid cases from January the 1st to July the 1st 2021, pictured above

According to sources, the wait for the change is to decide whether the evidence indicates it is safe to move forward with.

Daily hospital admissions from January the 1st to July the1st 2021, pictured above

At the moment, a total of 3,081 patients were admitted to hospitals within the last 7 days, at a 56.6% increase from the week before. These new needs for more beds will cause a demand for more staff at an unpredictable rate.

Daily vaccinations from January the 11th to July the1st 2021, pictured above

The Government aims to continue the steady rollout of vaccine jabs to help ease the pressure of the NHS, with almost 46 million people having received their first dosage.

Saffron Cordery, the Deputy Chief Executive for NHS Providers, agreed with the change, saying healthcare staff "should be able to carry on working even if they are pinged" on the NHS tracer Covid app.

She continued with, "The Government should bring that in as soon as possible. I can’t see any reason to delay. NHS trusts are struggling with the number of staff having to isolate - anecdotally, we’re seeing significant numbers off”.

"We’ve picked up on the fact some staff are deleting the app, but it’s not happening on a big, widespread scale at this point."

Among the total amount vaccinated includes 1.1 million NHS staff members who have had both jabs to help prevent the spread of the Covid virus.

Let us know what you think of the proposed change if you’re a nurse, midwife, healthcare assistant, or anyone else working for the NHS as a health or social care worker!